Alfred Russel Wallace: Back in the picture

Image: Natural History Museum

Giving a lecture this week on biogeography and the role played by Alfred Russel Wallace in the development of that area of study, I was delighted to be able to call upon comedian and musician Bill Bailey to lay the groundwork with his excellent documentary on the Welsh biologist.

Bailey's two-part documentary on Wallace (part two to be aired on BBC2, this Sunday) comes during Wallace 100, a series of events throughout 2013 to mark the 100th anniversary of his death.

Some, including Bailey, argue that Wallace is a 'forgotten man' of science; his contribution to the Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection having been watered-down or forgotten completely with the passing of time.

Wallace 100 seeks to put that right, not least by returning a portrait of the man to the main hall of the Natural History Museum in London - a portrait that was removed in 1971. Now, Wallace will have a presence in the NHM to rival that of his colleague in science, Charles Darwin.

A fund has also been set up to erect a bronze sculpture of Wallace at the NHM. This sculpture, currently being created, will finally complete an ambition which has existed since Wallace's death but was not realised due to the outbreak of World War 1.

As well as his contribution to the theory of evolution, Wallace is also know as the 'Father of Biogeography' - the study of how and why plants and animals are distributed across the world.

Biogeography, in tandem with evolution, explains why you find kangaroos in Australia and not in Canada; why you find giraffes in the wild in Africa and not in Ireland.

The Wallace Line (in red) marks a dividing line in biogeography

Wallace's travels and studies in south-east Asia led him to think about how animals and plants are distributed and he was able to draw a line - The Wallace Line - through modern day Indonesia and Borneo to indicate a dividing line between 'Australian-type' flora and fauna on one side and 'Asian-type' plants and animals on the other.

This line, we now know, corresponds with the meeting point of two major tectonic plates which have only (geologically speaking) recently moved together. So, whereas now these two regions lie very close together, the plants and animals on these plates developed in biogeographical isolation and differ hugely from one another. They're the original 'odd-couple'!

Watch the second episode of Bill Bailey's Jungle Hero on BBC Two on 28 April.

What would the first mammal look like?

The image below might look like your average small rodent - long tail, sharp teeth for insect-eating and small enough to fit in the palm of your hand, it is in fact, what scientists predict the world's first mammal looked like.

An artist’s rendering of the hypothetical placental ancestor (by Carl Buell)

About 65 million years ago, some 70% of the species on the planet were wiped out by some cataclismic event. After this wipeout, a new group of animals emerged which were to evolve to be the most successful on the planet.

The placental mammals vary hugely in size and shape. Of the c. 5,100 species now extant on earth, they range from the bumblebee bat that weighs around 1.5 g (that's just half the weight of a 2 cent (euro) coin!) to the blue whale that weighs in at 190,000 kg.

Now, scientists from around the world have published (pdf) what they believe the first of these mammals looked like. Using a mixture of genetic and morphological data, the team deduced that the "hypothetical placental ancestor" weighed between 6 and 245 g, ate insects and produced single offspring which were born hairless with their eyes closed.

The paper concludes that the placental mammals arose quickly after that cataclismic extinction event, known to scientists as the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) event, probably between 200,000 and 400,000 years afterwards.

Giant controversy resolved?

PM David Cameron at Giant's Causeway
(Image: National Trust/Harrison)

This Summer, the Giants Causeway visitor centre in Co. Antrim re-opened after an £18.5 million rebuild. However the National Trust, who run the facility were forced to defend some of the information presented in the visitor's centre after severe criticism from scientists.

An audio component of the interactive exhibition seemed to suggest that the National Trust was supportive (or at least sitting on the fence) regarding the notion that the Earth could have been formed 6,000 years ago. This was denied by the Trust in a series of statements at the time.

Even scientist and TV presenter Brian Cox has waded into the argument, tweeting: "to suggest there is any debate that Earth is 4.54 billion years old is pure shit".

For more on the original story, see my post.

Now, following a review of the section of the exhibition in question, the National Trust have re-recorded the end of the piece to "clear up any misunderstanding there may have been", according to Graham Thompson, Project Director for the Giant's Causeway.

"The National Trust only endorses the scientific explanation of the origins of the stones yet recognises that others have alternative beliefs", said Mr. Thompson.

You can read the transcripts of the original and new versions of the passage below (click to view a larger version).

A Giant Controversy

Finn McCool and Benandonner fight it out on the Giants Causeway (Image: National Trust)

The new Giant's Causeway Visitor Centre will make reference to creationism as an alternative viewpoint on how the geological feature was formed.

The centre, which cost £18.5 million to build, opened on July 3rd after a rebuild necessitated after a fire destroyed the old centre. However, the National Trust has had to issue a statement [pdf] regarding the information presented at the centre and to confirm that the trust is "entirely unequivocal in its acceptance of scientific consensus".

The National Trust issued their statement after criticism of the new educational tours and a statement from a Northern Ireland creationist organisation welcoming the National Trust's acknowledgement "both of the legitimacy of the creationist position on the origins of the unique Causeway stones and the ongoing debate around this".

The Caleb Foundation said that it had engaged with the National Trust "over many months" on the issue. However, the National Trust statement was clear: "All of the information presented to visitors in relation to how the Giant’s Causeway was formed, and how old it is, clearly reflects scientific consensus that the Causeway stones were formed 60 million years ago".

A National Trust spokesperson said: "We reflect, in a small part of the exhibition, that the Causeway played a role in the historic debate about the formation of the earth, and that some people hold views today which are different from scientific consensus. However, the National Trust is entirely unequivocal in its acceptance of scientific consensus".

The Caleb Foundation would seem to have form for this sort of thing. According to their website, they led a campaign in 2010 to get the then NI Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure, Nelson McCausland to change the Ulster Museum's 'Nature Zone' to reflect creationist ideas and to remove what it called "wholly misleading propaganda" regarding evolution. In a letter to the Minister, the group noted: "the very clear assertion is made across the entire "Nature Zone", that evolution is a fact. This gross and arrogant falsehood is further compounded by the complete absence of even the merest mention of any other theory of origins such as the Biblical account of creation."

A Press Association report says that the interactive exhibition in question at the Causeway includes an audio package in which historic figures debate the origin of the basalt columns. The end of the package includes:

"This debate continues today for some people, who have an understanding of the formation of the earth which is different from that of current mainstream science.
"Young earth creationists believe that the earth was created some 6,000 years ago. This is based on a specific interpretation of the Bible and in particular the account of creation in the book of Genesis.
"Some people around the world, and specifically here in Northern Ireland, share this perspective.
"Young earth creationists continue to debate questions about the age of the earth. As we have seen from the past, and understand today, perhaps the Giant's Causeway will continue to prompt awe and wonder, and arouse debate and challenging questions for as long as visitors come to see it."

The National Trust has attempted to further explain their position on their press office blog.

This is all a very interesting debate. The Caleb Foundation seems to be using Northern Ireland's disturbed past to argue for equality for all points of view. Regarding its Ulster Museum campaign, the group said: "If Northern Ireland is to move towards a shared future on a genuine basis of equality and inclusivity, then it is only right that a publicly funded institution such as the Ulster Museum is fully and sensitively reflective of the various views of society as a whole - including those of evangelical Christians."

The new Giants Causeway Visitor Centre (Image: National Trust)

In reality though, all viewpoints on all topics are not equal and should not require representation, particularly in a scientific and educational setting. Even TV presenter Brian Cox has waded into the argument, tweeting: "to suggest there is any debate that Earth is 4.54 billion years old is pure shit".

The fact is, the arguments of the Caleb Foundation and other 'Young Earth' Creationist advocates have been disproved for years. For example, scientifically informed and enlightened Christians have accepted evolution as fact for a long time. Even the Vatican and the current Pope has accepted evolution as scientific fact and argued that evolution did not exclude a faith in God.

For the NI government and the National Trust to pander to these notions espoused by creationists is disappointing. The Trust seems to argue that mentioning the supposed ongoing debate will do no harm given their commitment to the scientific explanation of how the causeway was formed. Perhaps not - the Irish myth that the 40,000 basalt columns were constructed by legendary hero Finn MacCool also finds a place in the visitor centre. However, nobody is arguing for Finn MacCool to find a place on the science curriculum.

UPDATE 18/07/2012: A spokesperson for the National Trust has said that "having listened to our members' comments and concerns, we feel that clarity is needed...To ensure that no further misunderstanding or misrepresentation of this exhibit can occur, we have decided to review the interpretive materials in this section.”

The Wallace Line

Painting of Wallace's Flying Frog from Sarawak by Wallace (1855) Copyright: AR Wallace Memorial Fund

On this day in 1913, the famous naturalist and biogeographer Alfred Russel Wallace died at his home at the grand age of 90 years.

He's probably best known, although not always credited, for independently proposing a theory of evolution due to natural selection alongside Charles Darwin.

Wallace's biogeographical work is particularly interesting. In the 19th century, he was considered a leading expert in the geographical distribution of animals, so  much so that he is known as the 'father of biogeography'.

Wallace travelled the world studying animal species in their own environments, including trips to South America and the Malay Archipelago (Malaysia and Indonesia). He was one of the first prominent scientists to raise concerns over the impact humans were having on the natural environment.

While on an almost decade long tour of the Malay Archipelago, Wallace discovered what is now known as the the Wallace Line. The imaginary line runs through what is now Indonesia, between Borneo and Sulawesi. To the west of this line, organisms are related to Asiatic species. To the east, a mixture of Asian and Austrailian organisms can be found.

When Wallace published his findings he was puzzled that islands little more then 22 miles apart could have profoundly different animal communities. It was to be almost 100 years before plate tectonics (the movement of parts of the Earth's crust) would be fully understood.

In fact, Wallace's line corresponds very closely to the boundary between two continental plates which were once very far apart indeed.

Biogeography is the study of why we find different organisms in different parts of the world. What is clear though is that history (on the geological timescale) is also important if we are to fully understand this distribution.

Fish Using Tools - Caught on Camera

The use of tools had long been considered a uniquely human trait until Jane Goodall's reports of tool use in chimpanzees in the 1960s. Now many other primates, some birds, dolphins, elephants and other animals have been observed using tools. Although there have been some reports of fish doing the same, we now have conclusive evidence, with stunning video footage of an orange-dotted tuskfish using a rock to open a clam.

The video has been published in the journal Coral Reefs by Giacomo Bernardi, an ecologist at the University of California. While diving in four feet of water, the scientist watched the fish carry out the elaborate procedure twice before switching on his camera and recording the event.

Shot in Palau in July 2009, the video shows the fish digging a clam out of the sand, carrying it to a rock and throwing it repeatedly against the rock to crush it.

"What the movie shows is very interesting. The animal excavates sand to get the shell out, then swims for a long time to find an appropriate area where it can crack the shell," Bernardi said. "It requires a lot of forward thinking, because there are a number of steps involved. For a fish, it's a pretty big deal."

The actions recorded in the video are remarkably similar to previous reports of tool use by fish. Every case has involved a species of wrasse using a rock as an anvil to crush shellfish.

"Wrasses are very inquisitive animals," Bernardi said. "They are all carnivorous, and they are very sensitive to smell and vision."

Writing in the published article, Bernardi notes:  "the similarity of the behaviours [between wrasse species] suggest that either they emerged independently or they correspond to a deep-seated beahvioural trait"

Bernardi says there may well be other examples of tool use in fish that just hasn't been observed:

"We don't spend that much time underwater observing fishes," he said. "It may be that all wrasses do this. It happens really quickly, so it would be easy to miss."

The Rap Guide to Evolution

Canadian rap artist Baba Brinkman has created the Rap Guide to Evolution. Supported by the Wellcome Trust, the music videos are now online and make for some interesting listening. You can judge for yourself whether you think they are useful teaching tools.

The videos are based on the successful theatre show 'The Rap Guide to Evolution', which was performed to critical acclaim at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

On the launch of the videos, Baba said: "The response to the show so far has been overwhelming, but these videos really take it to the next level. I hope educators all over the world find them helpful in overcoming the indifference and hostility that often impede the teaching of evolution, and science in general. Hip-hop music is all about rebellion, and no one's ideas are more revolutionary than Charles Darwin's."

The Rap Guide has been described as "astonishing and brilliant" by the New York Times, with Science magazine adding that Baba "marries the fast, complex, literate delivery of Eminem with the evolutionary expertise and confrontational manner of Dawkins".

The first in a series of twelve videos (two of which are currently available) is presented above. The remaining videos will be released over the coming months.  Enjoy!

Happy Darwin Day

This coming Saturday (Feb 12th) is Darwin Day - a global celebration of science and reason held to coincide with the birthday anniversary of evolutionary biologist Charles Darwin.

You can find more information on Darwin Day here.

The following is an award winning film clip by the Wellcome Trust and presented by David Attenborough which summarises evolution in spectacular fashion. Enjoy.

Christmas Science 17: Christmas Shopping

In the run up to Christmas, Communicate Science offers you 20 Christmas Science Facts. We'll post one every day until the 25th December.

Got your Christmas shopping done yet?
The last-minute holiday dash is on: Men tend to rush in for their prized item, pay, and leave. Women study the fabrics, color, texture and price.


The hunting and gathering ritual of the past continues today in malls around the world. Understanding the shopping behavior of your partner can help relieve stress at the stores, according to a researcher at the University of Michigan.

Daniel Kruger of the U-M School of Public Health says that gathering edible plants and fungi is traditionally done by women. In modern terms, think of filling a basket by selecting one item at a time, he said. Women in foraging societies return to the same patches that yield previous successful harvests, and usually stay close to home and use landmarks as guides.

Foraging is a daily activity, often social and can include young children if necessary. When gathering, women must be very adept at choosing just the right color, texture, and smell to ensure food safety and quality. They also must time harvests, and know when a certain depleted patch will regenerate and yield good harvest again.

In modern terms, women are much more likely to know when a specific type of item will go on sale, for example, than men. Women also spend much more time choosing the perfect gift.

Men on the other hand, often have a specific item in mind and want to get in, get it, and get out. In ancestral times, it was critical to get meat home as quickly as possible, Kruger said. Taking young children isn't safe in a hunt and would likely hinder progress. Of course these behaviors aren't genetically determined and don't apply to everyone, but there are consistent broad themes, Kruger said.

The following video explores how different shopping styles can be explained by evolution:

Science Snapshot Six: Darwin's Bulldog

Science Week is ongoing in Ireland and continues until the 14th. For more details of events taking place around the country, you can visit here.

Here on Communicate Science, for the duration of Science Week, along with our usual posts, we'll be posting a 'Science Snapshot' every day. If you have a Science Snapshot you'd like to share, you can email here and we'll post the best later in the week.

Today, it's an image of Thomas Henry Huxley as depicted in a statue in London's Natural History Museum. Huxley became known as "Darwin's Bulldog" because of his firm defence of Darwin's theories.

Huxley's debate with Samuel Wilberforce, Bishop of Oxford is seen as a turning point in the public acceptance of evolution.

The Origin of Conor Lenihan

The news, broken by politics.ie that Minister of State with special responsibility for Science, technology, Innovation and Natural Resources is to launch a book proclaiming that evolution is a hoax casts the country in a terrible light and lets-down anybody waiting on the 'knowledge-led recovery'.

The book, by Irish author John J May is entitled The Origin of Specious Nonsense and will be launched in Dublin on Wednesday evening. The event will be marked by a 'Gorillas and Girls Party' at Buswells Hotel and an after party at Lilies Bordello. The author's website says that Conor Lenihan will launch the book at 8pm.

According to the same website, the book is "a non academic attempt which is currently very popular worldwide due to the brilliant observationalist naturalist Charles Darwin's 200 year birth anniversary and 150 years celebration of his monumental laughable fantasy, "The Origin of Species" which I have read forensically and counted 1550 suppositions."

"What I am about to expose is their pretence that they possess arcane facts to support this toxic fiction," says the author.

Helpfully, the website details some of the author's research: "Incidentally four times last year I visited the brilliant Natural History Museum in London to examine the shrine to a religiously tortured excellent taxonomist Charles Darwin."

May also outlines 7 reasons why he 'detests and rejects evolution':

1: It teaches us to be satisfied with - not understanding origins.

2: It promotes the dangerous nonsense of no first cause - no supreme scientist and suggests order came from disorder.

3: It is a mataphysical speculation, a doctrine dressed up in scientific garb.

4: Anyone who teaches evolution is either ignorant or deliberately suppressing the known scientific facts.

5: It is a toxic poisonous mind virus which destroys the hearts immune system against hope and common sense.

6: It is an anaesthetic against reason.

7: It cripples sanity, promotes myths, obscures reality and elevates matter above a maker.

I'm not particularly bothered what this author believes. I don't think it's going to convert a whole generation to a non-scientific, ill-though-out view of human origins. What I object to is a Minister with direct responsibility for the governing and management of science and its funding lending his support to the sentiments expressed in the book.

Some have argued that his presence at a book launch does not mean he agrees with the contents of the book being launched. That is clearly not the case. Would he ( or any minister) attend the launch of a book claiming the holocaust never happened or that gravity doesn't exist?

You can let the Minister know what you think by emailing him at Conor.Lenihan@deti.ie

LATEST: After a huge amount of coverage on blogs, twitter and the mainstream media over the last 24 hours, the minister will now not launch the book http://bit.ly/dweEW3 

For more, see the comment section of this post.

Footprints prove reptiles were first to conquer dry land

The tracks were left by reptiles living 500 kilometres
from the nearest seashore

Reptile footprints which are 318 million years old have given scientists a new insight into the evolution of life on land.


The footprints were discovered in rock slabs broken away from sea cliffs at the Bay of Fundy in New Brinswick, Canada prove that reptiles were the first vertrebates (animals with a backbone) to leave the swampy coasts and make their homes on dry land.

The footprints were discovered by Howard Falcon-Lang of University of London during a trek along the coast in 2008.

"It's a very significant event in the history of life," Falcon-Lang said in an interview.

"About 400 million years ago, animals with backbones started to come on land, but these were frog-like creatures. And amphibians such as frogs have to return to the water in order to breed. They lay soft eggs that very easily dry out."

But Falcon-Lang said when the reptiles came along, they laid eggs with hard shells that they could lay on land, and could therefore start moving away from the shore.

The scientist said that he had actually been looking for something when he tripped over, scrapped his knee and came face-to-face with the small footprints (about 4 cm long) which were likely made by a reptile approximately 20 cm long and resembling a gecko.

"It really is that extraordinary," Falcon-Lang said. "You're capturing an event that probably just took a few minutes."